This invention relates generally to a performance enhancing and force absorbing dental appliance for use by athletes, and more particularly to such an adjustable, customizable appliance that spaces apart the teeth to absorb shock and clenching stress, to space apart the anterior teeth of the lower and upper jaws to facilitate breathing and speech, to lessen condyle pressure, force and impact upon the cartilage and temporomandibular joints, the arteries and the nerves, and to further increase body muscular strength and endurance.
Almost all athletes, such as body builders, weight lifters, baseball batters, golfers, football players, hockey players and bowlers, clench their teeth during exertion which results in hundreds of pounds of compressed force exerted from the lower jaw onto the upper jaw. This clenching force is unevenly transmitted through the jaw structure into the connective tissues and muscles of the lower jaw and further into the neck and back. This can result in headaches, muscle spasms, damage to teeth, injury to the temporomandibular joint, and pain in the jaw. Furthermore, clenching the teeth makes breathing more difficult during physical exercise and endurance when breathing is most important.
The natural inclination to clench the jaw during physical exertion is impossible to avoid. One theory is that this is an ancient reflex designed to protect the caveman's jaw from displacement or fracture. An injury to ancient man's jaw meant almost certain death from starvation. Man still instinctively clenches his teeth to lock his jaw into a safe position during aggression or physical activity to protect his jaw. But when the teeth are clenched, the body puts an upper limit on one's strength so that one can't overclench and damage one's teeth and jaw structures.
There are over 60 million overweight Americans today. Spending in the diet aid category equals $1.06 billion annually. Research shows that use of a dental appliance to prevent damage to the teeth during clenching helps to increase the productivity of an aerobic workout by increasing endurance and muscle activity and therefore calorie burn.
More than 80% of the population has some measure of improper jaw alignment, causing painful chewing, tooth grinding, migraine headaches, stress or several of these problems at once. The temporomandibular (TM) artery runs directly through the TM joint. This main artery carries oxygenated blood to the arteries in the face and head. When the TM joint is properly balanced, blood flows freely to these areas, which is believed to lessen the incidence of headache and stress. When the TM joint is out of balance or improperly aligned, undue stress is placed on this vital artery and the corresponding muscle groups.
Each year, reports the Journal of the American Dental Association, dentists make approximately 3.6 million anti-bruxing devices for their tooth grinding patients. At an average cost of $275 (but sometimes much higher), this equates to a one billion dollar market. Nocturnal tooth grinding is a major pain--powerful enough to crack a walnut at 250 pounds per square inch, the pressure is ten times the force registered during normal chewing. Bruxing causes the teeth to wear down at odd angles, affecting the shape of the face, causing migraine headaches and muscle soreness and aggravating TMJ disorders.
The market for over-the-counter analgesics in the U.S. was $2.91 billion in 1996. An estimated 18 million people suffer from migraine headaches, another 6 million form back and neck pain. While almost 3 million Americans are treated annually by pain clinics, many more remain in need due to inadequate insurance or denial of benefits for such treatment. Studies have shown that increasing the blood flow to the arteries of the face can help reduce headache pain. Repositioning the jaw by a dental appliance to alleviate stress and pain acts as a drug-free remedy to millions of stress and headache sufferers by temporarily restoring blood flow to the face and head.
It is well known that the birthing process creates a tremendous amount of physiological and psychological stress upon the mother. In fact, pregnant women go through weeks, if not months, of physical exercise to prepare them for the exertions necessary during the birth of their child. The actual birthing process is very analogous to athletes as women about to give birth may very well clench their teeth during the exertion of labor.
Rehabilitation relative to heart attacks, operations and injuries also require exertion and can be facilitated by an increased blood flow to the brain and return back to good conditioning with exercise.
Snoring occurs when the mouth is open and the tongue moves back into the throat. This causes the airway passage to narrow which increases the likelihood of snoring. It is known that moving the condyle of the lower jaw forward in a way will increase the airway and assist in the elimination of snoring.
It is believed that consciousness and the ability to focus is increased with an object in the mouth. This causes one to salivate, focus and be more awakened with improved concentration, hand eye coordination, and even thought process which otherwise would be non-voluntary reactions.
There is a need for an adjustable, customizable performance enhancing and force absorbing dental appliance for the mouth of a physically active, birthing or rehabilitating individual which will absorb shock and clenching stress otherwise transferred from the connective tissues, the muscles and lower jaw to the upper jaw, neck and back, will space apart the anterior teeth of the lower jaw from the anterior teeth of the upper jaw to facilitate breathing and speech, and will lessen condyle pressure, force and impact upon the cartilage, and temporomandibular joints, arteries and the nerves. There is also a need for an adjustable, customizable dental appliance that will increase blood flow to the face and head by repositioning the condyle of the jaw away from the TM artery. There is also a need for a personalizable dental appliance to reduce stress, bruxing wear on the teeth and snoring. The appliance should also increase rehabilitation and consciousness.